Veterans Minister Ivor Caplin has expressed his support for The Tank Museum's Lottery bid on an official visit to South Dorset.

With less than a month to go until The Museum finds out if its bid has been successful, The Minister made his first visit to the Dorset Charity as the guest of South Dorset MP and Museum Trustee Jim Knight to find out more about the re-development project.

He said; "The Ministry of Defence sees this as a very important project, and I would like to express publicly the support of ministers from my department prior to this important lottery decision.

The minister was told how the MoD was already playing an important role in The Museums development plans. Jim Knight said; "The development scheme has been made possible by the generosity of The MoD. As landlords, they have guaranteed The Museum security of tenure for a peppercorn rent in an agreement saving The Museum several million pounds."

He added; "We are delighted that Ivor was able to visit us, and are grateful for his support. The Museum is fortunate to have a good working relationship with the MoD, which is of great benefit for both parties.

"Among its many qualities, The Museum is a rare place of interaction between the military and the public, and as such it makes the modern military and its heritage more accessible."

Having completed his tour, Ivor Caplin said; "It is a stunning Museum, and it is playing a vital role in preserving artefacts and human stories. It is important that we hand the baton of remembrance on to the young and continue to show future generations what happened in the past. In this respect The Tank Museum acts as a memorial to veterans and tool for preserving and telling those stories in the future."

He added; "The plans are very exciting, and I hope the bid proves successful."

ENDS